Package for liquid laundry products

ABSTRACT

A liquid laundry product dispensing bottle is provided of a type not featuring a through-apertured gripping handle. The bottle includes a body having an open end terminating in a circular neck fitted with a pour spout. Along an uppermost perimeter the spout has a leading edge to allow optimum pouring of liquid in one direction. A first and second plane traverses the length of the bottle body with each bisecting the spout, the first and second planes being orthogonally oriented to one another, the first plane dividing front and rear major faces of the body into asymmetric first and second areas, the first area including the leading edge of the spout. A gripping ledge is arranged adjacent the open end beneath the neck and angled diagonally downward. A removable cap is fittable over the neck and spout. The bottle includes several cues to allow a user to properly grip same. These cues include the angled gripping ledge, sidewall curvatures and trademark placement.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention concerns a bottle especially adapted to dispense concentrated laundry detergents and fabric softeners.

2. The Related Art

Ordinarily liquid laundry detergent products are packaged in jugs.

This packaging features an aperture defining a handle area. A consumer inserts several fingers into the aperture to grip and manipulate the jug. Illustrative is U.S. patent application Ser. No. 2005/0139568 (Unilever) disclosing a jug with a shrink-sleeve covering extending over a full outer surface, except for the handle area. A spout is fitted within a dispensing opening and coverable by an overcap.

A significant amount of liquid product must be dispensed for each load of laundry. Relatively large size jugs are needed to accommodate some reasonable number of washes per package of product. The large sizes require apertured handles for lifting and manipulation.

A new generation of concentrated liquid laundry products are entering the marketplace. The same number of laundry loads can be washed with a much smaller volume of liquid. The often-unwieldy jugs can now be downsized to smaller bottles. Apertured handles are no longer necessary nor readily engineered into the smaller sizes.

Yet even in smaller sizes, a consumer must be able to securely grip the bottle packaging. Errant drops of the viscous concentrate liquid resultant from the pouring process can cling to the sides of the dispensing bottle. A good gripping surface is needed.

Another problem in downsizing is a need for orienting cues to achieve initial correct grippage. Apertured handles in large size jugs inherently cue the user to initially correctly grip the package. Without a handle there is no ready cue. The problem is significant where a non-handle bottle is fitted with a spout. Only in one direction can the spout properly pour liquid. An overcap hides the spout. An appropriate cue is therefore necessary to immediately grip in a direction allowing pouring without further grip manipulation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A liquid laundry product dispensing bottle is provided without a through-apertured gripping handle including:

-   -   a bottle body with a closed end and an open end, the open end         terminating in a circular neck fitted with a pour spout, the         spout along an uppermost perimeter having a leading edge to         allow optimum pouring in one direction, first and second planes         traversing a length of the bottle body with each bisecting the         spout, the first and second planes being orthogonally oriented         to one another, the first plane dividing front and rear major         faces of the body each into asymmetric first and second areas,         the first area including the leading edge of the spout, and a         gripping ledge adjacent the open end beneath the neck and angled         diagonally downward in a direction beginning from the second         area toward the first area; and     -   a removable cap fittable over the neck.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

Further advantages and features of the present invention will become more readily understood through the following drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a bottle with cap according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a rear view of the bottle according shown in FIG. 1 with cap removed;

FIG. 3 is a front view of the bottle shown in FIG. 1 with cap removed;

FIG. 4 is a right-side elevational view focusing on the right sidewall of the bottle shown in FIG. 3; and

FIG. 5 is a top view of the bottle shown in FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Now there is provided a dispensing bottle particularly suitable for concentrated liquid laundry products. Uses of the bottle are not limited but are particularly focused on either concentrated laundry washing liquids or concentrated fabric softening liquids. By the present construction, a consumer can be assured of a correct grip on the over-capped bottle. Through the cue of an angled ledge and an asymmetric body, grip becomes intuitive. Removal of the cap with the non-gripping hand exposes a spout now properly oriented with a leading edge allowing pouring in a natural manner away from the user's body. Also the spout is oriented along a less protruding sidewall panel of the bottle body. Soilage of the body by errant drops is thereby minimized.

FIG. 1 illustrates a first embodiment of the present invention.

Therein is shown a bottle body 2 covered with a cap 4. The body features a closed end 6 and an open end 8. There are two major faces on the body which are the rear and front faces. These may have information applied through embossing a plastic wall of the bottle, through an adhesive label or through shrink-wrapping essentially the entire body from open to closed end. Shrink-wrapping is preferred. Information may include trademark designation, ingredients, advertising, manufacturer identity, UPC symbol and combinations thereof.

Plastics suitable for the manufacture of bottle bodies according to the present invention include but are not limited to high-density polyethylene, low-density polyethylene, metallocene catalyzed polyolefin, polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate and combinations thereof. Bottle body walls may be formed of single or multiple layers. Particularly useful are multi-layer laminates which incorporate substantial amounts of recycled plastic resin in addition to virgin resin. Normally the bottle body is formed through an extrusion or molding process. Caps and spout fitments may be extruded or molded from any of the aforementioned plastics suitable for the body.

FIG. 2 illustrates the dispensing bottle with cap removed. Revealed is a neck 10 near the open end of the body. Thread tracks 12 are formed into and circumscribe the neck. A complementary set of tracks are fashioned on an inner wall at an open end of the cap 4. The thread tracks 12 allow the cap to sealingly engage the neck to prevent spillage of liquid laundry product.

A spout fitment 14 is secured within the neck. Therein rising upwardly is a pour spout 16. Along an uppermost perimeter of the pour spout is a leading edge 18. Optimum pouring in one direction without errant drippage is achieved by dispensing the liquid through the spout over the leading edge 18.

The body features two major faces. The first is a rear major face 20 seen in FIG. 2. The second is a front major face 22 shown in FIG. 3. A first plane A traverses a length of the bottle body bisecting the pour spout. Plane A divides the body into asymmetric first area 24 and second area 26.

FIG. 3 further illustrates a left sidewall 28 and a right sidewall 30. The left sidewall 28 features a less curved straighter profile than the right sidewall 30. The right sidewall has a more pronounced concave curved section 32 near the open end and more pronounced outwardly convex curved section 34 near the closed end than respective concave and convex curved sections 36 and 38 on the left sidewall.

FIG. 5 illustrates a second plane B orthogonally oriented relative to plane A. Plane B divides the bottle body into a pair of symmetrical areas.

FIG. 2 and 3 further show a gripping ledge 40 adjacent to the open end 8. Gripping ledge 40 is positioned beneath neck 10 and angled diagonally downward beginning in the second area 26 and terminating in the first area 24. FIG. 4 best illustrates terrace 42 and 44 outwardly protruding as members of the ledge on respective rear and front major faces 20, 22. Beneath each of the terraces are concave surfaces 46, 48. In combination the terraces and concave surfaces allow a user's hand to securely grip the bottle body. For a right-handed grip, the thumb cradles within the concave surface 46 while the other fingers curl into the concave surface 48. Terraces 42 and 44 prevent downward slippage from the grasp of the user.

Ordinarily a trademark 50 identifying the laundry product is placed on one or both of the major front and rear faces. As an additional cue for properly gripping the bottle, the front major face 22 is shown to solely receive the trademark. If required to also be present on the rear major face 20, the trademark on the front major face 22 will be of a larger size.

The term “comprising” is meant not to be limiting to any subsequently stated elements but rather to encompass non-specified elements of major or minor functional importance. In other words the listed steps, elements or options need not be exhaustive. Whenever the words “including” or “having” are used, these terms are meant to be equivalent to “comprising” as defined above. 

1. A liquid laundry product dispensing bottle without a through-apertured gripping handle comprising: a bottle body with a closed end and an open end, the open end terminating in a circular neck fitted with a pour spout, the spout along an uppermost perimeter having a leading edge to allow optimum pouring in one direction, first and second planes traversing a length of the bottle body with each bisecting the spout, the first and second planes being orthogonally oriented to one another, the first plane dividing front and rear major faces of the body each into asymmetric first and second areas, the first area comprising the leading edge of the spout, and a gripping ledge adjacent the open end beneath the neck and angled diagonally downward in a direction beginning from the second area toward the first area; and a removable cap fittable over the neck.
 2. The bottle according to claim 1 wherein the gripping ledge has on each of front and rear faces outwardly projecting terraces.
 3. The bottle according to claim 2 further comprising a concave surface adjacently beneath each of the terraces.
 4. The bottle according to claim 1 further comprising a left sidewall flanking the first area formed with a concave and a convex curved section.
 5. The bottle according to claim 4 further comprising a right sidewall flanking the second area formed with a concave and a convex curved section and having curvature more pronounced than the respective left sidewall concave and convex curved sections.
 6. The bottle according to claim 1 further comprising a trademark identifying the laundry product placed on the front major face, and wherein the rear major face either has no trademark or the trademark is of smaller size than found on the front major face. 